CHARM, a schooner inspired by traditional coastal work boats, was designed and partially built by its owner. In the fall of 2008, he brought the completed hull to Rockport Marine in order for the boatyard to build the deck, interior and spars. Roomy and comfortable down below, CHARM sleeps six and has a comfortable galley and engine room. She is powered with a Kelvin engine; all sails are constructed by Nat Wilson.This able one of a kind vessel was built with safety in mind and built to go global cruising short handed. Because of the highest standards of her construction,she could easily be a Coast Guard approved 49 passenger day vessel with a few simple additions.CHARM was launched in November of 2009. Email us for the sail plan.Paul Haley survey available to interested parties.The owner is keen to sell and has made a.MAJOR PRICE REDUCTION from $2,245,000 to $500,000..OBO

Design & Construction
The vessel was designed by Capt. Edward “Ned” A. Ackerman. He worked up the design and than started the construction of the vessel. The vessel is designed to resemble a traditional pilot schooner with a clipper bow, round bilge, full keel and transom stern. Her hull is planked with carvel planked 2 ¼” and 1 ¾” white oak. The framing in the vessel is 4 ¾” x 5 3/8” white oak laminated in six layers with resorcinol glue. The frames are wide at the lower ends and than taper as the get to the clamp. The vessel has a white oak keel and then a keelson running through the center of the vessel that is 8 ½” x 9 ½” oak of one piece. The keel bolts in the vessel are Titanium. The floor timbers in the vessel are 2 ¾” oak sided and at the engine beds there are 5 ¾” oak sided. The interior ceiling in the vessel is 1 5/8” thick and is in various widths. The sheer clamp in the vessel is 2 ¾” x 8 3/8” oak. The shelf is made up of two sections with one timber vertical and one timber horizontal for a finished dimension of 3 ¼” x 5 ½”. At the first visit to the vessel on October 7, 2008 the hull was completed to the extent seen in the photos above and the deck beams were in place with some decking completed. The sills were being fitted for the deckhouses at that time. The covering boards are 3” Alaska Yellow Cedar. The deck is going to be planked with 2 ½” square white pine over oak deck beams. The full deck beams are 4 ½” x 6 ¾” oak with the half deck beams being 2 ½” x 4” oak. The vessel will have two deckhouses. There will be a mid deckhouse over what would have been the hold in a working schooner and aft a deckhouse over the main cabin. The hull fastenings are all Monel. The lower 1 ¾” white oak planks are fastened by 4” x 24 Monel screws and the top four planks which are 2 ¼” are fastened by 4 ½” x 24 Monel screws. The deck plank fastenings are 4” x 24 bronze screws and the ceiling fastenings are 3” x 18 bronze screws. The keel is fastened with 16 titanium bolts and the floor timber bolts are bronze. The ballast keel is 9,000 pounds of iron. On the inside of the bilge there are 15, 530 lb lead pigs and castings between the floor timbers set in cement. The keel bolts pass through the internal ballast.

Mechanical
CHARM is powered by a four cylinder Kelvin diesel engine. The engine (Model R4, serial number 3823) is rated at 60hp @ 1200rpm. There is a Kelvin transmission with a ratio of 2:1 and a serial number of 38238. The engine drives a Luke 30D x 26P three bade feathering propeller on a 2” shaft through an Evolution Corp. oil bath stern tube and thrust bearing. The engine room is between the aft main cabin and the galley area. Also in this space are the fuel tanks and the generator which is a Kohler diesel model number 6E0D with a serial number of 2233740. It is rated at 6 KW @ 1800rpm and produces 120/240-volt AC.

Interior Layout
The interior of the vessel has a forepeak forward. This area is accessed through a deck scuttle and through a water tight door from the galley. Forward is the forepeak is general gear storage followed by a port and starboard berth. Below the berths is general storage. Aft to port is an enclosed head w/ hand-held shower and aft to starboard is gear storage. This area is followed by a water tight bulkhead with a water tight door. Next aft is the galley. Forward to port in this area is the “U” shaped galley area with a diesel stove forward and double stainless steel sinks aft. Forward to starboard is the double top loading refrigeration. Aft to starboard is a wood settee with an outboard berth. Aft to port is a dinette with a berth outboard. Aft of this is a bulkhead with a door leading into the engine room. The engine room is well planned for maximum accessibility. The engine is centered forward in the space. To port of the engine are the batteries along with the generator. To starboard of the engine are the tanks along with the water maker and the electrical distribution panel. At the aft end of the engine room is a bulkhead with a door that leads into the main cabin. The main or aft cabin has a full enclosed head w/ shower forward to port followed by a settee with a berth outboard. Forward to starboard is a locker followed by a pull out double. Aft to starboard is a storage area. Aft to port is the navigation station with a berth outboard. The nav table has a seat and an area where one can stand and work at the table. Aft is the companionway up to the deck followed by the lazarette.

Electronics

Garmin GPSMAP 4212 with radar

Garmin GPSMAP 4208 chartplotter

Simrad A150 (AIS) transponder

Raymarine ST70 Autopilot

Tacktick wind direction

Tacktick wind speed

Tacktick knot meter with distance

Tacktick depth sounder

ICOM IC-M802 VHF

ICOM IC-M604 SSB

Cell phone booster

Ritchie BN 202 bulkhead-mounted compass

Dirigo 6" flat top compass

Tanks

(3) 106 gal black iron diesel

(1) 95 gal black iron diesel

(1) 20 gal black iron diesel

(2) 90 gal stainless steel fresh water

(1) 68 gal polyvinyl black water

(1) 29 gal polyvinyl black water

(1) 20 gal polyvinyl gray water

Electrical System
CHARM's electrical system is comprised of both DC and AC systems. On the DC side the vessel has both 12-volt DC and 24-volt DC. The majority of the vessel is 24-volt DC with only a few items that require 12-volt DC. On the house side the 24-volts is provided by 6 12-volt G31 AGM batteries. The engine starting has 2 12-volt G31 AGM batteries in series for 24-volts. For the 12-volt side there are 2 12-volt G31 AGM batteries. There are also two additional G31 AGM batteries that are spares. They sit off to the side and are under a trickle charge should they need to be brought on line. For the AC side the vessel is designed with shore power access when the vessel is dock side. The vessel also has a Kohler 6KW diesel generator that produces 120-volt and 220-volt AC power. The generator is located aft to port in the engine room.

Mast & Rigging
CHARM is a traditional schooner rig. The foremast and main mast are built of laminated fir and are stepped through the deck landing on a mast step atop the keelson. Her standing rigging is parceled and served galvanized wires running to dead eyes with lanyards. The running rigging is 5/8” and ½” spun Dacron.

CHARM was designed by Ned Ackerman of Rockport, Maine. Mr. Ackerman began construction of CHARM and built the hull up decks and then commissioned Rockport Marine to finish and launch the vessel - which was completed in 2009. CHARM was built and finished to very high standards. She is designed for offshore voyaging and is equipped for this kind of travel. With the generator and the systems that have been put onboard CHARM is completely self sufficient. Though she is heavily built and a full rigged schooner, she is designed to be operated with limited man power. The vessel can go offshore and be away from land for some time given the systems and the tankage onboard. CHARM was moved out of the building shed at Rockport Marine in the fall of 2009 at which time she was launched and seatrials were conducted.

Owner's comments

LIFELINES: I have been using 5/8' polyester rope instead of small diameter stainless. It hurts a lot less if you fall against it. There are heavy ring nut backing the bowsprit shrouds. Each set of mast shrouds has thimbles seized at the pin rails. The davits each have a loop welded on the forward curve. The life lines lead from the bowsprit shroud nuts through the thimbles to the davits where I tie them with a rolling hitch so I can easily drop them or keep them tight. Furthermore, there is a bronze staple on each side of the after break to anchor a flat safety harness tape which leads forward to the windlass. I planned to make a safety net to enclose the cockpit entirely, but have not yet done so. For Subchapter T passenger compliance, several intermediate stanchions can easily be installed.

MAST WINCHES: The rig is traditional gaff schooner with plenty of purchase in the tackles. There are also jig tackles on the standing ends of the halyards for sweating up the last little bit and easy adjustments when it's blowing. It is a simple system but takes miles of line. All sheets and halyards which might require heavy hauling are 5/8" spun polyester, not for strength per se, but for easy grip. During construction, however, I planned ahead and led wires below deck to the bases of the masts in case I won the lottery and decided to install electric halyard winch heads on the pin rails at a later date. There are spare switches on the breaker board for them.

WINDLASS: The windlass is an old fashioned manual "fisherman's rocker windlass" from Lunenburg Foundry. It is very powerful and good exercise. There is also an electric windlass mounted on the base of the bowsprit, useful for dock lines in a blow. I have not worked out how to operate the rocker with an eccentric on the clutched end, but it is there and could be done. Because I intended long range cruising, I did not want to depend entirely upon anything electrical, but I also mounted a five thousand pound line pull electric capstan at the stern for handling a stern anchor for a Bahamian moor of for Mediterranean style stern-to mooring. It also can serve the main sheet and dock lines.

CHAIN LOCKER: I don't like to introduce harbor mud below deck; so the two 300', 1/2" galvanized schedule 40 anchor chains stow in boxes on deck. This does mean hand stacking the chain, but then the chain pile never can collapse and cause a snarl. There is a high-pressure salt water washdown pump installed forward for cleaning anchors and chain.

EXHAUST: The Kelvin exhaust has a heavily insulated dry stack to a wet muffler mounted just below the deck. From there, the wet exhaust drops to a "T" with one leg leading to a sea cock and through-hull on each side. That way the exhaust hoses are of minimum length, easily inspected, fully serviceable without contortions or the removal of joinery. The exhaust for the generator is a water lift which exits through a sea cock and thru-hull on the port side.

KELVIN PARTS: The service manual of the Kelvin is very complete. I have been dealing with the same sales manager at Kelvin, Ian Sprowl, since 1972, and the one part I needed in all that time, a thermostat I had accidentally stepped on, he sent free of charge. There is also a permanent caulked hatch in the deck over the engine room. Reef out the caulking and undo the bronze lag bolts, lift out the hatch, and the engine can be removed straight up without disassembling the schooner's interior should an owner want a more modern propulsion plant. I didn't. The Kelvin is simple and serviceable, sips fuel, and with the fuel filtration system in place to protect the injector cams, it should last several lifetimes. I used it because of its reliability and my intention to visit faraway places.

DIESEL FUEL CAPACITY: There are three 106 gallon and one 94 gallon main fuel tanks, flat topped and round bottomed (i.e. with a U-shaped cross section) constructed of 1/8" steel, epoxied and with proper baffling and access ports for manual cleaning. Each tank is fully isolated by valves and also has a sediment trap with a valve and cap for draining in the event of a fill with bad fuel. The tanks have full size fill vents to prevent blowback from high speed pumps. The fuel lines port and starboard lead first through a 30 micron, then through a 10 micron filter so any fuel problems can be isolated. From the two banks of filters, the fuel goes to a 24 gallon day tank, also 1/8" epoxied steel. There is a manual shutoff that meets Subchapter T requirements in the steering box locker on deck which can seal this tank. Small working vents for all tanks pass through the day tank and then to a 3 gallon poly tank with drain, translucent for easy inspection, before a single vent leads above deck. This way, any green water on deck or excess humidity that finds its way into the vent is trapped before it can get to the tanks. The tanks are not only bolted down, but posts lead from the deck beams to ensure they stay put in a knockdown. Note also, the fire extinguishing unit in the engine room is twice the recommended size and has both automatic and manual pulls.

DAY TANK NOTE: There is an electric transfer pump to move fuel from the selected main tank to the day tank, and also a manual pump on a loop that can be used in the event of an electrical failure. Fuel gravities from the day tank to the engine, generator, and stoves.

OF GENERAL NOTE: Being old fashioned and not entirely trusting electricity in a marine environment, I designed the Charm's systems to function perfectly well without it. One person not in a hurry to get going can sail her alone. (My first schooner, a 47' pilot schooner of similar design but few amenities, had all oil lamps and a Kelvin P4R diesel that I always hand started, and I single-handed her from Mystic to Lunenburg and in between for several summers.) Using care and the compression releases, the Kelvin could be started in a pinch using four six volt lantern batteries wired in series. Fuel can be moved manually. There is easy access to a gravity tap from the water tanks. There are also salt and fresh water foot pumps at the galley sinks. The stoves need no juice. The sails can be raised and handled by hand, and I have sailed her alone numerous times. The anchor can be set and raised manually. On the other hand, I do enjoy modern conveniences. Each bunk has a fan at its foot and a LED reading light at its head. The LED spreader lights are bright enough for any work on deck at night. The autopilot takes the work out of long slogs under power. The interior is white and bright for yet-to-be-installed kerosene lamps. I have integrated handholds everywhere possible. I did not fill every space with joinery because I wanted to live with her for a while before I located bookcases and other personal or special joinery.